Lino Martínez Villafinez

LINO MARTÍNEZ VILLAFINEZ (Marín, Pontevedra, 1892 – Santiago de Compostela, 1960).
“Santiago Cathedral.”
Oil on canvas.
Signed on the reverse.
Measurements: 25 x 34 cm; 34 x 42.5 cm (frame).

A self-taught painter, Lino Martínez arrived in Santiago de Compostela with Dr. Blanco Rivero in 1914, where he began working as a nurse and surgical illustrator at the Hospital Real. During these years, he frequented the artistic circles of Santiago de Compostela, particularly Tito Vázquez’s studio, and eventually decided to enter the National Art Exhibition alongside Bonome and Asorey. In 1926, he received a scholarship from the Provincial Council of Pontevedra, and that same year, the curator of the Holy Year Exhibition selected one of his works. Today, his paintings are widely distributed throughout the municipalities of Santiago, Marín, and Vilagarcía, as well as in the Provincial Museums of Pontevedra, Pobo Galego, das Peregrinacións, and Quiñones de León, the Galician Parliament, the Caixanova, La Caixa, María José Jove, and Pedro Barrié de la Maza Foundations, the Union for the Protection of Artisans, and various private collections.